DPA New Zealand

About DPA

Who We Are

DPA (New Zealand) is an umbrella organisation representing people with disabilities, the organisations involved in advocacy on their behalf, and service providers.

DPA has a network of regional assemblies who advocate on local issues.

As a national assembly encompassing people with all types of disabilities — physical, sensory, intellectual, psychiatric, neurological and age related — DPA is the voice of people with disabilities in New Zealand.

The governing body of DPA is the National Executive Committee (NEC) and they have ultimate responsibility for everything that is done by, or on behalf of DPA.

Apart from having to act within a legal framework, the NEC are also bound by the DPA constitution. These are the rules that the members have decided that the organisation will operate by.

DPA's management is delegated by the NEC to the Chief Executive Officer who heads the National Secretariat.

Our Vision

A society which provides both equity and maximum opportunity to participate for all people. Read more details on the Vision …

Our Philosophy

People with disabilities must have the right and the opportunity to:

DPA Constitution

Read the Constitution online or download the constitution as a Microsoft Word document.

Our Role

DPA offers information and advice, coordination of service provision and various organisations, strategic planning, monitoring, self-advocacy, treaty partnership, international links.

Find out more about the Role of DPA.

Supporting DPA

If you are keen to help achieve a society that maximises full participation for all New Zealanders, join DPA.

Find out more about supporting DPA.

DPA: THE BEGINNING

History recorded by Quentin Angus, 1996

During the 1960's and 70's it was realised, especially in the districts at the grassroots level, that there was a need for co-ordination and co-operation between the many disability organisations. The first moves took place by the formation of co-ordinating councils for the disabled in Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin, closely followed by Wellington in 1972.

There were no formal links between these bodies, but a close liaison was developed, and in 1975 a week-end meeting was held in Wellington to formulate submissions on the recently introduced Disabled Persons Community Welfare Bill, which was influenced by the UK Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act, and "prodded on" by the intention of JB Munro, the then Member of Parliament for Invercargill, to introduce a Private Members Bill along similar lines. The Combined Co-ordinating Councils' submissions, even then contained a statement:

"From experience it has become obvious that in designing and locating and modifying public buildings for the benefit of the disabled, the able bodied members of the public also benefit because the recommended design features provide a "spin off" which is beneficial to the public in general, and if a building or a particular area has easy access for the disabled then there is also easier access for the able bodied. As a result more people are encouraged to use the buildings thus making them in many instances more economically viable, and at the same time discouraging congestion by assisting in ease of movement...

"The fact that the co-ordinating Councils are requesting mandatory access requirements is not really a radical departure..."

NATIONAL COORDINATION

The Combined Co-ordinating Councils, which by then included those of Hawkes Bay, Palmerston North and Nelson met again in 1977 at Wellington, principally to consider the possibility of forming a national body. This move received an added impetus by the visit to New Zealand with the assistance of the Rotary Clubs in District 994, of Mr F Lionel Watts MBE, an Australian quadriplegic, who was the founder of the "House with No Steps", and who was also actively involved in ACROD, the Australian Council for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled.

Another precipitating factor was the offer of $400,000 of Telethon funds to establish aids and information centres, provided that the Combined Co-ordinating Councils (which had then been joined by the Waikato Co-ordinating Council) became incorporated under the Incorporated Societies Act. As a result the Combined Co-ordinating Councils (some of which were themselves incorporated) and individual members established the New Zealand Co-ordinationg Council for the Disabled, which was incorporated on 9 November 1978.

Also in November 1978, the New Zealand Crippled Children Society Inc called a meeting at Wellington of representatives of national organisations (the New Zealand Council for the Disabled was given "observer status") with the objective of forming a national body to represent Rehabilitation International in New Zealand. The meeting failed to resolve that a new representative national body be formed. The New Zealand Council made its claim to represent R.I., but the Crippled Children Society and other national societies were not prepared to accept the Council as the R.I. representative. Possible reasons for the lack of support were that they considered that the Council should not have permitted the smaller organisations to join as members, and that the Council was too much influenced by what were termed "consumer interests".

Thus it was that an autonomous Standing Committee of the Rehabilitation League (New Zealand) Incorporated (a quasi government agency which had provided office facilities for the New Zealand Council) known as Rehabilitation International (New Zealand) was set up to manage the 1981 Year of Disabled Persons in New Zealand. The New Zealand Council was a member of RINZ and participated fully in the United Nations inspired International Year of Disabled Persons.

Ken Munro was appointed Executive Officer for IYDP nationally in June 1980.

Quentin Angus, who was President of the New Zealand Council became a member of the National Committee for IYDP, and was the Convenor of the Legislation/Income Focus Committee of IYDP.

After IYDP it was not appropriate for a Standing Committee to either represent New Zealand at international forums or to make representations to government. The disability groups, which had worked together during IYDP, formed the foundation on which a national organisation representing both national and local organisations and individual people with disabilities could be constituted. For this purpose a series of meetings were held in 1982 between representatives of an ad hoc cross-disability group of people with disabilities, Rehabilitation International (New Zealand), an organisation of national agencies concerned with service delivery and the New Zealand affiliate of Rehabilitation International and the New Zealand Council for the Disabled, which represented a number of regional co-ordinating councils and organisations.

Another factor which influenced the meeting was that there had been a major division of viewpoint between individuals with disabilities and the representatives of National Affiliate Organisations at the International Conference of Rehabilitation International in Winnipeg in 1980, which sent ripples throughout the Rehabilitation/Disability world. The division was caused by participants with disabilities requesting the right to participate in the operations and structures of Rehabilitation International. They believed the organisation was not listening to the voice of the consumer and was not including them in the decision making process on matters that affected them. The effect of this division was the establishment in 1981, of Disabled Peoples' International which set in place an organisation that spoke for people with disabilities at International as well as National levels.

Mr Bill Maddren of the Rehabilitation League had attended the Winnipeg Conference as part of the New Zealand delegation, and had become privy to the meeting held by the participants with disabilities. Bill Maddren's background was that he had been Secretary of the Auckland Co-Ordinating Council for the Disabled prior to him coming to Wellington. He had not only helped to organise the meetings of the Combined Co-ordinating Councils, but he also had been Secretary to the New Zealand Council since its inception, despite a long battle with his own ill health. On his return from Winnipeg he was convinced that the New Zealand Council was on the "right track" to cope with likely future developments because of its encouragement, not only of national and local organisations, but also of people with disabilities as individuals.

Therefore the stage was set for the constitution of an appropriate body to represent people with disabilities both within New Zealand and overseas, to be achieved ultimately by the New Zealand Council offering to modify its constitution. This was accepted and the Council resolved at the Extraordinary General Meeting of the New Zealand Council for the Disabled Incorporated held on 21 March 1983 that the resolutions passed at the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Council held on 26 February 1983 be confirmed, namely:

(a) That the name of the New Zealand Council for the Disabled Incorporated be changed to the "Disabled Persons Assembly (New Zealand) Incorporated".

(b) That the Rules of the New Zealand Council for the Disabled Incorporated be altered in accordance with Rule 13 by revoking Rules 1 to 20 both inclusive of the present Rules, and substituting the new Constitution and Rules of the Disabled Persons Assembly (New Zealand) Incorporated as amended and adopted at the said meeting of the 26 February 1983.

Quentin Angus remained as President of the Assembly until the First Annual General Meeting of DPA on 15 May 1983 at Hamilton, when he stood down to be succeeded by Byron Buick-Constable, who was the first President of DPA to have a full year in office.

Professor Charlotte Floro, Vice-President of Rehabilitation International, and Chairman of RI Asia and Pacific Regional Committee summarised the feelings of the AGM, at which Mr Ron Chandran-Dudley, Chairman of Disabled Persons International, and Vice-President of Rehabilitation International was also present, by saying:

"My dear friends, it's really a distinct honour and privilege to have been invited to this momentous occasion where we are witnessing the merging of three organisations in New Zealand which will marshall the ranks and blend resources and forces in order to work in unison towards the total improvement of the status of disabled persons in this country. It has been a long journey coming to participate in this meeting, but I must tell you that every inch of the way has been most rewarding."

DPA qualified for membership of Rehabilitation International, and because the Assembly was required by its constitution to have a majority of people with disabilities on its executive, it also qualified for affiliation with the Disabled Peoples' International. DPI is a world-wide coalition of persons with all types of disabilities and is based on the principles of equal opportunity and responsibility in society; integration and full participation.

DPA now has some 300 Organisational Members who represent or deliver services to people with disabilities, and some 1,200 Individual Members, who either have a disability themselves or are the parent or guardian of a person with a disability. For this reason it is recognised as the effective voice of people with disabilities. DPA encourages people with disabilities to speak and to help themselves

Since its inception in 1983, DPA has evolved in accordance with international trends which expect disabled people to be the major drivers in the decisions that affect their lives. A good example of this, is the way that the power and control structures have changed.

Initially, each Organisational member had 2 votes and Individuals one. This immediately gave Organisational members the control in DPA and they were prepared to exercise that control. In the early 1990's, the Organisational member vote entitlement was reduced to one. This gave some sense of equality to Individual members but raised the question of why Organisational members (who were invariably run by non-disabled people) should have any influence over the decisions made for disabled people. In 2001, DPA's Constitution was amended again so that only disabled people, the guardians of disabled children and organisations of disabled people can vote in DPA fora. This guarantees that the views expressed by DPA have been endorsed by disabled people. It must be noted that non-disabled people are welcome to inform the decision-making processes of DPA but not decide on final outcomes.

While DPA has been influential nationally with such initiatives as the Total Mobility Scheme, Teletext and promoting the need for the New Zealand Disability Strategy, in the international sphere DPA has been honoured by a Past President, the late John Stott, being the first person with a disability to be elected in 1992 to the World Presidency of Rehabilitation International.